190 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
gives greater height to the cabin. The engine-room is aft of amidships. A steam- 
winch, for heaving in trawl or net warps, stands just abaft the foremast. 
The dimensions of the Granton are : Length over all, 108 feet ; between perpen- 
diculars, 100 feet ; beam, 19 feet ; depth, 10 feet. She steams 11 knots, and makes 14 
knots, with favorable circumstances, under sail and steam. The following additional 
particulars have been kindly furnished by the builders, who liave also supplied the 
details of their other steamers, together with the plans : The Oranton’s gross register 
tonnage is 120 tons ; net, 50 tons ; cargo measurement, 100 tons ; dead weight, 180 
tons ; draught of water, loaded, 10 feet ; same, light, 8 feet. She is provided with 
compound surface-condensing engines, j)laced amidships; cylinders, 18 by 34 inches; 
length of stroke, 24 inches ; number of revolutions, 120 per minute. Nominal horse- 
power is 45; effective horse power, 225. She has a horizontal multitubular boiler, 
working pressure, 85 pounds ; one steam-winch, and one donkey-engine. The con- 
sumption of coal is 3 tons per day ; capacity of bunkers, 30 tons. There are three 
bulkheads and one hatchway. 
The dimensions of the Oannet are : Length, 102 feet ; beam, 18 feet; depth, 10 feet. 
The same firm exhibited a builder’s model of the screw-boat Onward, which was 
built in 1877, and is 60 feet long between perpendiculars, 16 feet wide, and 7^ feet deep. 
Her gross register tonnage is 40 tons; net, 20 tons; nominal horse-power, 20; effective 
horse-power, 100; speed, 8 knots. She had a long, rather full body, hollow floor near 
the keel, bow full above water (for a steamer), very concave below, short run, and 
round stern. The shape of this vessel is not so good as that of the others, though it 
must be borne in mind that the smaller size of the Onward did not, perhaps, admit ot 
the fine lines which are noticeable in the Granton. 
The following interesting history of the attempts to successfully use steam fishing 
vessels is from the pen of Mr. David Allan, senior partner of the firm of D. Allan & 
Co, Under date of September 13, 1883, he writes: 
“You will observe in the extract from the Scotsman of 25th July, 1881, it is there 
mentioned that the Pioneer was the first steam trawler launched by us in 1877, This 
is a slight mistake, as the Pioneer was simply a fishing boat, built by us with steam- 
engines of 10 horse-power (driving the vessel about 6 knots an hour in a calm), solely 
for net and line purposes, in the Shetland Islands. She answers the purpose well for 
which she was intended; but the people on board were unable to work the machinery, 
and hence, like many pioneers, she proved unremunerative to the owner. 
^‘The Onward, we might say, was the first steamer designed and built especially 
for fishing purposes. We, however, put small high-pressure engines on board, which 
were very imperfectly made, and consequently were continually breaking down, and 
being unable to get any skilled fishermen to go on board, owing to their prejudice to 
steamers, she also proved unremunerative. 
“The Mamelena 1st, built from the same lines as the Omcard, and engined with com- 
pound surface-condensing engines, and sold to Messrs. Mercader & Sons, San Sebas- 
tian, Spain, was really the first successful screw fishing vessel; and I might say she 
combines all our experience to that date. The machinery has given every satisfaction, 
and she happening to fall into the hands of men such as Mr. Mercader and Mr. Gori- 
stidi, who was associated with him in the enterprise, both being men of great intelli- 
gence and perseverance, they have the credit of being the fir.st to make screw fishing 
steamers a commercial success, which you can easily see from the fact that they have 
